We tested 44 hi-fi headphones. For us, the best for the system at home is currently the Philips Fidelio X3. It is solidly made, sits comfortably over the ears and delivers an even better sound experience compared to its predecessor model.
The ATH-MSR7b from Audio-Technica, on the other hand, is our favorite for mobile use. Thanks to its uncritical connection values, it is perfect for smartphones whose headphone output does not really show off its performance.
Nevertheless, it delivers a wonderfully balanced sound image there.
Impedance, Sensitivity and Symmetry
This test is not about Bluetooth headphones or those with active noise cancellation, because you have to compromise on sound with both. We therefore have separate test reports for you for these headphones.
Impedance is the name given to the AC resistance of headphones. In interaction with the source device, it affects the volume and the sound.
High quality studio headphones usually work with an impedance of around 300 ohms, sometimes even more. Mobile devices such as audio players or smartphones, on the other hand, harmonize best with headphones with an impedance of 30 ohms or less due to the limited amplifier power. Stationary hi-fi devices with a headphone output usually require an impedance that lies between the two extremes at around 100 ohms, but they can usually cope with higher impedances.
The sensitivity of headphones is similar: It states how much sound pressure the headphones can generate with a power of 1 milliwatt and is also a parameter for the attainable volume, but above all dynamics.
With conventional connection cables with an asymmetrical design, the lines for the left and right channels share the shielding, which is also often used for the return transport of the signal. With the symmetrical cable, each channel has its own forward and return line as well as its own shield. If the source, i.e. the amplifier, is also constructed symmetrically, this leads to better channel separation so that the left and right channels can no longer interfere with each other.
A question of principle – the converter
In addition to the closed, open and half-open principle as well as the on and over ears, we have now also represented two different converter technologies.
On the one hand, there are the dynamic converters, which is probably the most widely used technology: Here, the membrane and coil for the drive form a firmly joined unit. Said coil dips into a magnetic gap and is moved to the beat of the music. This movement is transmitted to the membrane, which then transmits the sound to the ear.
In the magnetostatic transducer, the coil windings are vapor-deposited onto the membrane and are therefore part of the entire membrane surface. This membrane is stretched between two magnets and also moves as soon as musical electrons flow through the coil.
Magnetostatic transducers offer the best sound quality
The membrane of the magnetostatic and their relatives, the electrostatic transducers, is considerably lighter than in dynamic systems and is also driven over the entire surface. Therefore, it can follow even the finest instructions from the driving coil – and only those. It is almost free of unwanted partial vibrations that are not contained in the music.
The construction of a magnetostatic converter is, however, a challenge and usually not as cheap to implement as with dynamic converters. More about the different converter systems can be found at Wikipedia.
The best hi-fi headphones for at home
With headphones, which are mainly designed for stationary use, it is less about excluding the environment than about uncompromising listening pleasure, ideally within your own four walls. So it doesn’t matter whether the outside world shares your taste in music or you want to isolate yourself from the outside background noise.
Whether closed, open or half-open, the construction of the earpiece and the transducer is solely due to the best possible music reproduction. Impedances and sensitivities only play a role here if we may have to select the player accordingly. Nevertheless, there will also be copies here that are also passable on the smartphone or other mobile players, as is so often the case, the transition is fluid.
